Protesters march on Khartoum’s presidential palace

KHARTOUM (AA) – Hundreds of Sudanese protesters on Thursday began marching towards Khartoum’s presidential palace to demand the resignation of President Omar al-Bashir and his government.</p> <p>According to witnesses, protesters marched through several districts of the capital chanting anti-Bashir slogans, including “The people want the regime to fall”.</p> <p>Social media activists, meanwhile, shared video appearing to show similar protests in Sudan’s northern cities of Abri and Al-Sukut.</p> <p>Since mid-December, Sudan has been rocked by popular protests, with demonstrators decrying al-Bashir’s seeming failure to remedy the country’s chronic economic woes.</p> <p>At least 19 people have been killed in the protests, according to official accounts. </p> <p>Earlier this month, al-Bashir — in power since 1989 — pledged to carry out urgent economic reforms amid continued calls by the opposition to protest. </p> <p>A nation of 40 million, Sudan has struggled to recover from the loss of three quarters of its oil output — its main source of foreign currency — since the secession of South Sudan in 2011.